Guest Speaker: Dr Carol Bell
Location: Sir Stanley Thomas Lecture Theatre, Centre for Student Life, Cardiff University CF10 3BB
Time: 5.30pm, Wednesday 8 November 2023. There'll be light refreshment and drink after the lecture.
Title: “Her pawb i greu dyfodol cynaliadwy: gweld y patrwm a buddsoddi ar gyfer y tymor hir” ('Everyone's challenge to create a sustainable future: see the pattern and invest for the long term')
The Edward Lhuyd annual lecture is an event organised by the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol and the Learned Society of Wales.
Dr Carol Bell is a member of the Society, and is a former Managing Director of the Global Oil & Gas Group at the Chase Manhattan Bank (1997 to 1999)
and, previously, head of the European Equity Department at JP Morgan in London. She has an MA in Natural Sciences (Biochemistry) from the University of Cambridge, a BA in Earth Sciences (Geology) from the Open University and an MA and a PhD from the Institute of Archaeology, UCL.
In Wales, she is a member of several boards, including the Innovation Advisory Council of Wales, Cyfarthfa Foundation, and Football Association of Wales. She recently retired from the boards of the Development Bank of Wales, Museum Wales, and the Wales Millennium Centre. She is also on the council of Research England, and the boards of the National Physical Laboratory and Museum of London Archaeology as well as three international public companies.
Lecture Abstract:
Some of the biggest developments in human history have come from the ability of polymaths to recognize patterns in data of all kinds, whether linguistic or scientific. Back in Edward Lhuyd's time it took a special kind of thinking to build a credible explanation for the distribution of the Celtic languages. A little later, Sir William Jones, with time to spare as a colonial judge in India, noted the similarities between Sanskrit, Ancient Greek and Latin which led to the characterization of the Indo-European group of languages.
In an age with ever more powerful scientific tools, including machine learning and the ability to sequence DNA, the ability to think in a truly interconnected way across disciplines and geography has exploded. This lecture will reflect on what this means for a small nation like Wales, and ask if the conditions are in place to see the pattern and join the dots to create a purposeful and prosperous future for our nation.
Formulating policies to ensure the best result for society and the planet requires matching timetables with the task, making the time of Senedd unequal to the task in many cases. Our biggest challenge, tackling climate change, requires a system change in energy production that will take decades. I wonder if this would be better achieved outside of party politics and the confines of the nation state?